There exists a variety of spring type clips of various configurations. Many such clips are designed to be pivotally attached to a support member such as a rod portion of a hanger which acts as not only the pivot, but also as a support for the components of the clip which interacts therewith. Examples of such clips are disclosed in Bisk et al. U.S. Pat. No. Re-32,269 and Morrish et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,276.
Typically, spring clips designed to engage a support member such as the crossbar of a hanger are constructed to require the utilization of such a crossbar for the clip to function as intended. If the clip is not assembled to the crossbar of a hanger, a substitute support is necessary in order to provide a fulcrum about which components of the clip pivot.
Alternatively, when efforts have been made to provide a spring clip of the type which does not require a support rod to provide a fulcrum therefor, a separate fulcrum point is provided which is displaced from the axis of rotation, e.g., the rod about which the jaws are supported. The unreliability and complexity of such constructions which are intended to enable operation with and without such a support member have detracted from their usefulness and from their satisfactory operation.
It would be highly desirable therefore to provide a spring clip of the type capable of being supported on and pivoting about a support member or capable of operating totally independently thereof while continuing to pivot about the same axis of rotation provided by the components of the spring clip.